Tickets for the 2018 How To Change the World Conference are now available. Due to the exceptional demand for tickets we are moving the venue to the Royal Geographical Society. As they can only cater for a maximum of 450 people, we are offering tickets with or without tea and coffee. Lunch is only included with the Salon Premium Tickets. First confirmed speakers will be announced in Spring 2018. Read more.

Clinical Psychologist Meg Jay’s first book, The Defining Decade, inspired one of the most-watched TED talks of all time – Why 30 is Not the New 20 – with over nine million views. Now she comes to the how to: Academy with a new talk on people who having shouldered greater than average hardship as children defy expectation and achieve better than average success as adults. Whether it was experiencing parental divorce or growing up with an alcohol or drug-abusing family member, the people Meg Jay will introduce us to are all survivors. She will explore what they have in common that made it possible for them to transcend the trauma of their early years and to build successful adult lives. WHAT THEY’RE SAYING ‘This extraordinary book taught me more about resilience than anything else I’ve read. With the ear of a therapist and the voice of a novelist, Meg Jay delves deep into the human condition to illuminate how we find strength after suffering. It’s impossible to read Supernormal without seeing yourself in it – and without seeing yourself more clearly too’- ADAM GRANT, author of ORIGINALS, and OPTION B with Sheryl Sandberg. Read more.

In this new series leading public intellectuals who profoundly disagree with each other come to the how to: Academy stage to debate the issues which divide them. For our launch event two of the world’s leading thinkers- Niall Ferguson and Will Self- will battle over Brexit, Europe, Trump, Populism and much else. Book now, to ensure your ringside seat. Read more.

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In this talk by one of the world’s leading experts in the art of persuasion, you will learn some of the tricks you need to win arguments.. Among other things, you’ll learn how to get your body language just right; perfect your timing and make your opponent feel calm, happy, and in control, as you steer him or her towards your point of view. This promises to be an indispensable masterclass in the gentle art of persuasion. Read more.

An unmissable journey through classical music with award- winning violinist and BBC Radio 3 presenter Clemency Burton-Hill. Drawing on her new book Year of Wonder, in which Clemency chooses one piece of music for each day of the year, with a short explanation about the composer to put it into context, Clemency in conversation with Hannah MacInnes will bring classical music alive and share its diverse wonders with us whether we’re complete novices or lifetime enthusiasts. Join us for an inspiring and uplifting evening on classical music. Read more.

Additional date now available In this talk, Daniel Coyle, New York Times bestselling author of The Talent Code, goes inside some of the most effective organisations in the world, ranging from Google to Pixar, and reveals their secrets. He will not only explain what makes such groups tick, but also identify the key factors that can generate team cohesion in any walk of life. He will examine the verbal and physical cues that bring people together, and the specific strategies that encourage collaboration and build trust. This talk based on Dan’s groundbreaking new book The Culture Code is based on a simple insight- great groups don’t happen by chance. They are built according to three universal rules. WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ‘A truly brilliant, mesmerizing read that demystifies the magic of great groups, The Culture Code blows all other books on the subject right out of the water. Read it immediately.’ Adam Grant, bestselling author of Originals ‘If you want to understand how successful groups work – the signals they transmit, the language they speak, the cues that foster creativity – you won’t find a more essential guide than The Culture Code. This is a marvel of insight and practicality.’ Charles Duhigg, bestselling author of The Power of Habit Read more.

Additional date now available In this talk, Daniel Coyle, New York Times bestselling author of The Talent Code, goes inside some of the most effective organisations in the world, ranging from Google to Pixar, and reveals their secrets. He will not only explain what makes such groups tick, but also identify the key factors that can generate team cohesion in any walk of life. He will examine the verbal and physical cues that bring people together, and the specific strategies that encourage collaboration and build trust. This talk based on Dan’s groundbreaking new book The Culture Code is based on a simple insight- great groups don’t happen by chance. They are built according to three universal rules. WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ‘A truly brilliant, mesmerizing read that demystifies the magic of great groups, The Culture Code blows all other books on the subject right out of the water. Read it immediately.’ Adam Grant, bestselling author of Originals ‘If you want to understand how successful groups work – the signals they transmit, the language they speak, the cues that foster creativity – you won’t find a more essential guide than The Culture Code. This is a marvel of insight and practicality.’ Charles Duhigg, bestselling author of The Power of Habit Read more.

Described as the James Baldwin of the 21st century, Hilton Als appears in conversation with Hannah MacInnes to talk about his latest book. This wide-ranging conversation on race, sex, and love will look at the diverse figures who populate ‘White Girls’: from Michael Jackson; Truman Capote; and Eminem; to Jean Michel Basquiat; and Malcolm X. Travelling through the last decades of the twentieth century, Als will unravel the fiercely protected notions of sexual and racial identity that have led us to where we are today. Read more.

Additional On Stage Tickets Released! “How To Understand Our Times” is an event series collaboration between The New York Times and how to: Academy bringing together New York Times journalists and leading figures in diverse fields to examine pressing issues in a changing world, including gender equality, artificial intelligence, and alternatives to fossil fuels, among others. Two of the greatest thought leaders of the 21st century come together to discuss the Future of Humanity. Join us for an unmissable conversation between the intellectual titans – Yuval Noah Harari and Thomas L. Friedman. In Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari compressed 70,000 years of history into a single book, arguing that one species rose to dominance over all others because shared beliefs enabled collaboration. In Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow, he argued that the centre may be shifting once more, as we transfer our faith in ourselves to the gods of data and the algorithm. Thomas Friedman has argued that the beginning of this century will be remembered not for conflicts or political events, but for the globalised ‘flattening’ of the world and the explosion of advanced technologies. The cognitive revolution has already happened. What will our restless and aggressive species do about it? Join us for an urgent conversation between two great soothsayers of the age in which we now find ourselves. Read more.

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The foundations of Quantum Mechanics were established in the first half of the 20th century. But what does the most important theory in all of science actually mean? In this talk based on his new book Beyond Weird, the acclaimed science writer Philip Ball will help us get to grips with the most fundamental theory of physical reality, and to explain how its counterintuitive principles create the world we experience. Join us for an exhilarating tour of the contemporary quantum landscape. Read more.

In the week prior to World Autism Awareness Week, we bring together four differing perspectives on autism. Over 700k people in the UK are autistic, and 2.8m people have a relative on the autistic spectrum. Chaired by Jessie Hewitson, this discussion will highlight changing attitudes and perennial misconceptions and misperceptions of autism in our society. It will also highlight that understanding autism is not only an inspiration but also a duty. “Autism is life-changing, but it isn’t a tragedy: acceptance and adaptation are not resignation.” – David Mitchell TICKETS Read more.